Is It Smart To Get A Smart Watch? A Few Things To Consider

With the introduction of the Matrix Powerwatch smart watches have overcome their final hurdle: their limited battery life. Endless power by simply wearing the smart watch has taken away the last advantage that regular quartz watches have. I strongly suspect that this will seal the deal for the quartz watch, which will soon start its decent into oblivion. But does it also seal the deal for you?

Especially with the holiday season coming up, smart watches will undoubtfully be a popular gift. They are relatively inexpensive, and most of them are indeed cool gadgets to play with. Remember that about 25 years ago you could buy watches that also had a very basic version of Super Mario on them, that you played on the LCD screen? That kind of excitement is what most people have with a smart watch. And were those Super Mario watches came with some very annoying beep sounds, smart watches have their own way of annoying you, by vibrating to indicate an incoming email when you are using the bathroom for example.

Most people don’t realize it, but smart watches increase your connectivity. Now you don’t even have to pick up your phone to see a message or check your email. It is all in (or actually on) the wrist. That can all be great, but you need to fit it into your lifestyle consciously. In fact, I even strongly advise you first to make a short list of functions that you want, use and can integrate into your daily life and then find the perfect smart watch. This way you are in control, and you are not blatantly adapting your life around the watch you just bought.

Smart watches will soon become the new normal, replacing quartz watches. Some people might hold on to them like they do with cell phones that are not smart phones, but the vast majority will change. Given the nature of smart watches, they will most likely not become heirlooms in a way that even a quartz watch can become. They are tools that can indeed be good looking, but mostly serve a practical purpose, strongly driven by increasingly new features. Some of us might ignore them entirely, and others will wear them professionally and go without a watch when they are on the clock. Others might use this time to enjoy a beautiful (vintage) mechanical watch. But whatever flow you want to follow, be sure that you are captain of your own ship.